Lightning Returns Final Fantasy XIII: Rise of A Dark Hero
by ZombieSlayerOfTheUnderWorld
Summary: Lightning has to save as many souls before the end of the world, but a mysterious & merciless vigilante is making it hard for her. Lightning has a new goal: convince this person to stop helping people and end his killing spree, or end this with a fight that only one of them will walk away. M for Graphic Violence, Strong Language, Gore, Sexual Content, Disturbing Content. OCx?
1. One Man

**What if a Punisher-Like vigilante character was in Nova Chrysalia and being a thorn in the side for Lighting and Hope. After watching all the episodes of Season 2 of Daredevil and reading Punisher MAX the idea popped up in my head. All FF characters belong to Square Enix, if I owned them then Lighting and Vanille would be a married couple. Be warned this fic will be very graphic. I'm posting this story twice. One under the Final Fantasy XIII category, another on the Lightning Returns category. I did this to see which one get's the most views. I may or may not delete one of them.**

* * *

 _Chapter One: It's One Man_

 _I'm the hand of God_  
 _I'm the dark messiah_  
 _I'm the vengeful one_  
 _(Look inside and see what you're becoming)_  
 _In the blackest moment of a dying world_  
 _What have you become_  
 _(Look inside and see what you're becoming)_

 _~ Vengeful One - Disturbed ~_

Once upon a time, Lightning had committed a terrible sin. It happened long ago, in a past that she could not change. She was fighting a war that never ended. She thought that she was saving the world, and she needed help. So she turned to Serah; the only family she had, her younger sister.

But, she had sent Serah to her death. Lightning knew what she had done could not be forgiven, but she prayed that someday it could be undone. Dreaming of the day that she might bring Serah back, she fell into a long sleep: a sleep as dark as death. The centuries passed, and each one seemed like an eternity. One day, the light touched her. She knew what it was. God himself was speaking to her. All-powerful, all-knowing, ruler of the world and sky above:

 _Bhunivelze._

The light was his voice, and she felt warmth on her skin as it spoke. He told her what she had to do. She would be his servant, and if she succeeded in doing his bidding her reward would be a miracle. He said Serah would live again, and Lightning would have her back at last. And so Lightning was chosen by God to rescue lost souls and guide them past the end of this world and into the next.

She became The Savior.

The light that surrounded her ebbed away, though for the brightness that surrounded her it was hard to tell at first. The pure white surfaces of the Ark reflected the distant starlight, and seemed to radiate from within.

The center of what would be God's new world was surrounded by the scraps of metal and material from the Ark that Hope himself had tried to create 500 years prior. It floated around the central platform slowly forming into various structures; buildings, transports, all the mechanical workings that would become the mainstays of the new world.

And standing in the center of all of this was the mighty tree that rose up high overhead. Twelve perfect blooming flowers – six on either side of the main vine – glowed brightly, though the light from bottom right bloom was slowly beginning to fade. At the top was an enormous flower, which would open on the final, thirteenth day. This was the tree of life, Yggdrasil.

Standing at a large display of monitors and technical equipment just beneath Yggdrasil was Hope Estheim. Once, long ago, they'd fought side by side, bound by a common destiny. He was just a boy then, kicked around by fate, scared and angry, but they'd become friends. And then he grew up, he was going to be humanity's great leader, the one who'd guide them all to a brighter future. But it didn't work out the way any of them had expected.

"Hello, Lightning. Welcome home," he said.

This seemed an appropriate sort of greeting, though Lightning had long since lost the only home she'd ever known. A lot had changed during her long sleep. When she awoke, the Hope who she'd seen become a man was now a boy again. He was up here, in lonely command of the Ark, and this was where he'd told Lightning about God's plans for the two of them- and the world.

 _Bhunivelze, god of light, has made a decision," Hope had said. "The gates are open and Chaos has flooded through, consuming the world and everything in it. Not even God can stop it, and he isn't going to try. Instead he is going to build a brand new world. But he needs people to live in it- what would be the point of a world without souls? That's where you come in, Light. You're the last piece of the puzzle. You're the Savior. It's a simple role. You have to rescue as many people as you can from this world and lead them to the new one. It's an incredible opportunity. You can bring salvation to hundreds, maybe thousands. In return, you'll get your chance to bring Serah back."_

 _"A deal huh?" Lightning had replied. "I scratch God's back and he gives me what I want- my sister."_

 _"He's giving you a chance. No guarantees. I know it isn't right using your sister, but..."_

 _"It doesn't matter. God is using my dead sister as a bargaining chip. Something like that should infuriate me to no end. But, for whatever reason, I don't feel angry." Lightning had remembered pondering her words very carefully at this. What was the best way to word this? "It's like there's a hole where she used to be."_

 _Hope nodded. "I think I know what you mean. I'm the same way. It all happened such a long time ago. I remember it clearly, but the feelings. They're gone."_

 _Lightning had remembered all too well the burden that Hope had carried with him. His mother's death, the loss of his people, the futility of his centuries of work trying to protect humanity. There was so much that should have weighed him down, given him doubts, angered him. But, it didn't._

 _"Maybe that's how God wants it. Maybe emotions in his servants just distract us from what we're supposed to do. So he got rid of them for us."_

 _"Maybe he did. And maybe returning me to childhood was part of his plan too. But we can't expect to understand everything he does."_

Of course she had to accept God's deal. What choice did she have? It was her fault that Serah died. If the only way she could save her was by doing God's will, so be it. With Hope Estheim to guide her, she began her holy mission. Liberating the souls of the living from a dying world, and ushering them into a new one. The savior. Servant of mighty Bhunivelze himself.

Though her first day had not gone according to plan, and there was precious little time left in it.

"Light? Light, what's the matter?" Hope asked. "What is it? Are you alright?"

Lightning shook her head and moved towards the monitors. "I'm fine. Just reminiscing."

Hope moved beside her, the monitors now flashing various images from the four major areas left in the world. There was the capitol city of Luxerion, home to the Order of Bhunivelze and the religious masses who prayed for the new world. There was, of course, Yusnaan, a party city ruled by Snow where people went to celebrate the last few mortal pleasures they had to enjoy. There was the last patches of nature that remained amidst the sea of Chaos; the Wildlands: a land of verdant fields, mountainous peaks and dense forest. And finally there was the remains of the ancient civilization of Pulse, scattered amid ruins and desert sands: the Dead Dunes. This was all that remained of Pulse, the island of light: Nova Chrysalia.

It was here that the people lived; ageless, timeless. And yet while they never aged they remained susceptible to the torments of illness, pain and death. Now humanity was dying away, unable to give birth to new life to replace those who passed away.

"Five hundred years ago, Chaos was unleashed and our world began to be consumed," Hope said. "Five short centuries. That's what it took to destroy all of creation. Now there's barely anything left at all."

Lightning had already heard this part. "And when the Savior has used all her light, the bells will toll and the world will end. Is that what you told me?"

"Yes. But when that time comes, Bhunivelze will finally awaken, and he'll bend his great will to create a new world."

"Right. And in the meantime, I've got some souls to save."

"Yes, as many as you can. Remember, every soul you leave behind will be lost for all eternity."

 _No pressure_ , Lightning thought.

Hope turned to her. "As long as you're here, you're safe. You can rest and not worry about what's happening in the world below. When you're in the Ark, time ceases to flow for anyone, but us."

"Is that all God can do?" Lightning asked. "He can stop the flow of time up here, but he's helpless to prevent the world from being destroyed?"

"Yes. In thirteen days, God will reawaken. It'll all be over then, and no power in the universe can stop it. That's why it's so important for you to save these souls. Remember how much Snow had changed? Here, at the end of the world, there are many people like him, caught in the grip of despair, their hearts shackled by regret and longing. If you reach out and help them with their troubles, you can break those shackles. Then their souls will be released. They'll be free to be reborn in the new world," Hope looked over the monitors, pulling up some recent scenes from Luxerion.

Lightning looked over the scene, the North Station Plaza, where amid the dark streets a large group was gathering. Of course, as time had stopped nobody was moving, but amid the still image Lightning could make out what appeared to be the figure of a young woman, lying on her back with a knife plunged into her.

"No more lectures today, you're free to return to the surface whenever you want. But remember you need to be back here every day by 6 AM," Hope said.

"You're giving the Savior a curfew, is that it?" She asked incredulously.

"There is a good reason. I'll explain it to you when the time comes," Hope said. He pointed to a large green pedestal which stood before an inverted ebony arch. Hope's prized invention; the Warp Machine. She had, of course, already used it once.

"I'm worried about Snow, I should go to his palace," Lightning said.

"You could, but I suggest you visit another city instead."

"You want me to abandon Snow?"

Hope shook his head. "Down on the surface, time has stopped for everyone, remember? The palace will still be on high alert. It would be next to impossible to get anywhere close to Snow.

"You're saying I should let things cool down first."

Hope nodded. "I'm going to send you to Luxerion. It's the capital of the world- or what's left of it, anyway. I'll place you inside and inbound train. When the train stops at the station, you can get off with the other passengers. Something has happened in front of the station."

"All right, do it," Lightning said, turning towards the warp machine.

"You're surprisingly calm for someone who's about to venture into unknown territory. But you were always brave."

"Brave? I don't feel brave. I don't feel anything. No worry, no confusion, no fear."

"That's good, but you still need to stay safe," Hope said.

The two exchanged a knowing glance and then Hope turned around and pressed a few keys on his control panel. With another beam of light, Lightning left the Ark, and Hope behind her.

* * *

 _Day 1, 21:00_

"The Yusnaan train is now arriving. Please stay clear of the yellow line. All passengers for Yusnaan, prepare to board the train. Passengers for the Wildlands or the Dead Dunes, please head to South Station."

The PA echoed through the small train station, the clear sound of the prerecorded woman's voice louder than even the rattle of the monorail. Lightning rubbed her neck as she stood up; she wondered if she'd pinched a nerve when she was thrust into one of the seats by Hope's little machine. The train came to a complete stop and Lightning disembarked.

The train station was small, but it was efficient. Two small corridors connected together, both leading to a stairwell in the middle of the station which led down into the plaza. The checkered floor was clean, but hardly shining. Everything in this station seemed to have a slight feeling of decay about it. Somewhat appropriate given the state of the world. And yet, Yusnaan had been nothing short of opulent. Perhaps the two cities differed on their priorities.

The shining neon sign that announced the train arrivals and departures suddenly went black. At first Lightning thought that maybe it had just lost its power, but then several guards approached the front of the train. The one in the lead gave a series of unheard orders to the conductor and then headed down to the plaza with his men.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention!" the conductor shouted. "The plaza and this station are on lockdown! The train to Yusnaan won't be leaving until the Inquisitor completes his investigation."

There was some muttering and more than a few sour faces, but surprisingly there was not much in the way of protest. Lightning headed towards the stairs leading to the Plaza and Hope began buzzing in her ear again.

"Luxerion, a bustling metropolis. The divine city of light and the holy see of salvation. It's the last bastion of peace and order in a dying world. Most of the people who live here worship the almighty Bhunivelze. The city is governed in his name by a powerful religious sect known as the Order of Salvation. God's followers believe in ultimate redemption and their faith helps keep the fires of hope burning. But even in this pious city, a darkness lurks untouched by divine light. A heresy that rejects the teachings of supreme Bhunivelze."

Lightning had reached the bottom of the stairwell and now stood out in the middle of the lamplight plaza. A small clock tower that was only about twenty feet high stood in the center of the plaza. The soldiers were now surrounding it. The two gates on either side of the plaza were brought down and additional sentries were posted in front of them.

Lightning recalled the image she'd seen back on the Ark and had a suspicion about what this could mean. It was confirmed by a passerby who stood a few feet before Lightning.

"It's another girl."

"How awful..." another said.

"I bet it's the heretics' doing."

As the passerby's moved out of the way, Lightning saw the faintest glimpse at the young body she'd seen on the screen. Blood soaked the ground near her corpse.

"The divine city doesn't look so holy now," Lightning commented.

"This was no accident," Hope said. "The girl was left here intentionally."

Once again, Hope was clearly right. As the crowd continued to thin, Lightning saw that the dagger sticking in her back also bore a note. Lightning moved closer to try and get a better look when suddenly a woman behind her screamed. The woman was pointing at the top of the station, where Lightning noticed yet another, much larger clock. What had caught the woman's attention, however, was the figure of another woman being hurled over the side.

"Light!" Hope shouted.

The figure stopped, at the end of a rope hung about its neck. It jerked slightly as it swung in front of the clock.

"Help her!" Hope pleaded.

"There's no need," Lightning said, calming down after she got a better look at the figure, which she now realized was composed of steel rigging and sacks covered in clothing and a pink wig. "Just a dummy. Hope, did you see who dropped it? They must still be close."

"My sensors didn't pick up anything at all. I'm running a search of the city's video database, but I'm coming up blank so far," Hope replied.

"Doesn't matter. I'll just find out myself," Lightning replied.

As Lightning spoke a message appeared on the wall next to the clock tower. Lightning recognized the text:

 _The evil savior will die at the hands of the Shadow Hunter._

"Luxerion, the divine city of light- is that what they call it? Trouble is, the brightest lights cast the darkest shadows."

* * *

On top of building of the Restaurant District, a man dressed in all black military gear is looking through his scope from his Sniper Rifle at the scene from the North Station, his scope went from the the crime scene to the dummy to Lightning herself.

 _God damn Children of Etro, 3 innocents have been killed, no matter how many of this fuckers I kill, more keep coming._

He continue to scan the the area with his rifle, trying to find any clues.

 _No matter, I'll keep killing them even it's the end of the world._

He got up, picked his sniper rifle, and made his way to Forsaken Graveyard, maybe he can find something useful there.

* * *

The Inquisitor stood before the body of the slaughtered woman. He wore a bright white robe with a strange pointed mantle that framed the back of his head. The decoration of the robe was minimal, and yet it was clear that he was a high-ranking member of the church. The Order clearly felt that less was more when it came to their public officials.

Lightning walked up to him. She figured if she was going to find out what was going on, she would be best talking to him first.

"We need to solve this case quickly," The Inquisitor said to his guards. "Luxerion is the city of divine light, yet it has seen the murder of three girls in three days, not to mention another stream of unknown murders. The people seem to be growing fearful. If any of you find out anything at all, I'd be anxious to hear it."

Lightning took this opportunity to make her presence known. The Inquisitor gave her a questioning look. Lightning realized that between her shattered sword and unusual attire, she must stand out. And yet the Inquisitor simply continued as though he understood her intentions perfectly. Lightning soon found out why he was treating her without suspicion.

"There are similarities among the victims," he continued. "They have all been young women and all of them had rose-colored hair."

Lightning subconsciously ran her hand through a soft pink strand of her own hair. The Inquisitor nodded.

"Yes, just the same shade as yours," The Inquisitor now directly addressed Lightning. "You may also become a target of the killers. I'd urge you to be careful, but you may not need to worry."

One of the guards stepped forward. "I knew the latest victim. She was a leading member of the Order clergy. She'd been a rising star, destined to become the next high priestess. But then, she retired suddenly. For reasons of health, or so it was said. And then, this..."

Lightning rubbed her chin. Three young women, all with rose-colored hair had been murdered, and the latest victim at least had a connection with the Order. The Inquisitor aslo mention another a stream of murders as well, but she'll ask him later. And then, there was that message:

 _The evil savior will die at the hands of the Shadow Hunter._

As the Inquisitor and his men got back to examining the crime scene, she decided to wander around the plaza. There had to be other clues, witnesses. Anything to give her some idea of who was responsible.

She noticed a set of scaffolding which lead up to the spot where the dummy was hanging. A few of the Order guard were now in the process of taking the dummy down, but it must have been there long before they showed up. That was most likely how they'd made it atop the station to begin with. Lightning climbed up the first ladder and saw a nervous looking man, leaning against the wall, talking to the nearby guard. Well, perhaps ranting was a more appropriate term, as the guard did not seem to have anything to contribute to the conversation, let alone a chance to contribute. The man spoke in a quiet faux-casual voice, chewing on his knuckles in between words.

"This is my favorite spot. Hang out here long enough, and you get to see all kinds of things- like those white-garbed loonies, for example," the man seemed to find his courage after this statement and stopped shaking. "The Children of Etro are heretics, and they don't believe in the Order's teachings. Those Etro fanatics used to keep a low profile, but recently I see them everywhere. The Order's authority isn't what it was. Now those people wander the streets like they own the place. But from what I am hearing some kind of gang is targeting them, whenever those Etro fanatics strike, they get hit hard. What's stranger is that this group was never identified, no one knows, not even The Order know who this group is. Who knows what this group's goal is?"

This was already becoming an enlightening affair. Before too long she figured she would know all about Luxerion, even if most of her experience so far was from overheard conversations. What Lighting kept thinking is what the man said, a group has been targeting the Children of Etro whenever they strike.

The guard hefted the dummy down on to the top most scaffolding and set about his work. He noticed Lightning first, before the other man had, and was the first to offer a word of warning.

"The same people who killed the girl brought that dummy here. It's important evidence- don't touch it. The victim had rose-colored hair- and the wig on that dummy was of the same color. The killers appear to believe that the 'evil savior' will take the form of a young woman, with rose-colored hair. Everything points to this being the work of those heretics. But why are they so sure what the savior will look like?"

This was all getting a little personal to Lightning. Whoever this Shadow Hunter was, he knew, or at least had a very good hunch as to what Lightning looked like. The there's this group that not even The Oder know who they are. And then there these Children of Etro. Lightning had once served as Etro's Champion. Now there was a group claiming to be her servants. But Etro would never demand slaughter such as this.

Lightning climbed down from the scaffolding and made her way to the far side of the plaza. She leaned back against the wall of the inn. She saw several more of those papers, similar to the one that had been sticking to the victim, blowing about in the breeze.

"'The evil savior will die at the hands of the Shadow Hunter'," the innkeeper said, talking to his friend. "Certainly an interesting statement. I've heard of the Shadow Hunter once before, from a guest that was staying here at the hotel. The same guest told me he's the head of that band of fanatics, but I don't know who he really is- or was."

As if Lightning requited clarification of her suspicion; she'd already suspected that the Shadow Hunter and the Children of Etro were linked. Not to mention the unknown group who are targeting the Children of Etro. That had all but confirmed it. Lightning began to pace the plaza. She was trying to fit the pieces together in her head.

So far, everything made perfect sense. The Children of Etro, and the Shadow Hunter were killing these women in an attempt to kill her. That much was obvious. The two lingering questions of course were "how?" and "why?"

"It can't be... dammit, it's not like him to be late. But what if- no, no, no couldn't be that..."

Lightning turned to see the conductor from earlier standing at the bottom of the stairs to the station, loudly venting what sounded more like fear than frustration.

"Something wrong?" She asked. "Not about those murders, is it?"

"God, no! At least, I hope not. You see, it's the end of my shift and I'm waiting for my replacement, but h-he hasn't shown," the conductor was shaking, almost panic stricken. "He's been late before, but never as bad as this."

"You're starting to worry, right?" She asked.

The conductor let out a strange sound somewhere between a groan and a grunt. "He likes to make out he's a tough guy, but he isn't at all frankly. His name's Holmes. If you run into him, do me a favor, will you? Tell him Thorton's worried- and needs to go home."

Lightning nodded. "All right. If I see anyone in uniform wandering around where they're not supposed to be, I'll talk to 'em."

Lightning knew with the plaza shut off, Holmes couldn't be too far. She made her way through the center of the plaza and towards a small Outfitters shack. It was here, she saw a man wearing a uniform chatting with the owner.

"Good heavens, this has become quite the predicament," the owner was saying. "Those messages say that the Shadow Hunter will kill the savior. Sounds pretty, I don't know, prophetic right? If you believe what you hear around town, it seems that the Children of Etro have an Oracle Drive. That's a rare thing."

 _An Oracle Drive,_ Lightning thought. _Of course._

Oracle Drives were the mechanical creations of the seeress Yeul. They were devices that recorded her visions of the futures. With an Oracle Drive and the proper mind to interpret your findings, you could accurately predict the future. That was it. That was how they knew what the Savior looked like. There was just one last piece of the puzzle she needed.

Lightning patted the man in uniform's shoulder. He jumped slightly at her touch.

"You work at the station, don't you? Your fellow attendant is worried about you."

The man groaned. This was Holmes all right. " My...? Oh, no! Is it time for my shift already? I completely lost track of time! Look, can I trust you?" Lightning nodded. Holmes took a look at her hair and, like the Inquisitor, decided that was enough. "I saw who did it. You know, the people who threw the dummy off the clock tower? I got scared, so I've been laying low. I can't go to the station, that's where they'll look for me."

"You were there? What did you see, exactly? You have to tell me."

Holmes suddenly became rather stubborn, but Lightning could tell it was just out of fear. "I don't have to do anything. But i-if you can protect me from those people and get me to the station, I'll tell you all about it."

In her former lives, Lightning might have considered this a burden, but she was charged with saving souls, and as a result, saving lives was her responsibility as well. She led Holmes back to the train station, being sure to make sure they were not being tracked. When they finally reached Thorton, both he and Holmes breathed deep sighs of relief.

"Holmes, you're safe! I was so worried about you, I could barely concentrate on my duties!"

"Sorry, boss. I saw what happened over where they found the girl. I guess I just panicked," Holmes replied.

The two exchanged words for a moment as Holmes began his shift and Thorton ended his. As it turned out one of Thorton's previous colleagues was killed by a monster, and part of Thorton's fear had stemmed from this previous experience in his life.

 _A true friend that cares. Maybe that's enough to save a soul_ _,_ Lightning thought.

Lightning's heart swelled as faint white auras unseen by these men traveled into her body. Two more souls that she had saved, simply by helping them find one another.

"Well, a deal's a deal. You got me here safe and sound, and so I'm going to tell you exactly what I saw. It was the Children of Etro. They tossed the dummy off the tower. I really wanted to tell the Inquisitor what I saw. Honestly, I did. But I was afraid those heretics might find out and make me their next victim."

"Anything Else?" Lightning asked.

Holmes put his hand on his chin, "Now that you mention it, I did see this guy walking in The Restaurant District."

"How did he look like?"

Holmes shrugged his shoulders, "Don't know. He's big, probably about 6'5, was wearing some kind of military gear. All Black."

"So the culprits are the Children of Etro," Hope said, speaking again for the first time in a while. "But what is their objective. What are they after?"

Lightning excused herself from the two men and headed back into the Plaza.

"Let's find out," she replied. "Once the gates are open, I'll try tailing them. Discreetly. It'll be the easiest way to find their hideout. I'll talk to the Inquisitor, and hopefully get these gates open."

Lighting was walking back to the crime scene, but she couldn't get what Holmes just said, could this man be somehow connected to the unknown group and the unexplained murders as well.

Her thoughts are cut short when she finally reach the crime scene.

"If you know anything about the case, I'd be glad to hear it," The Inquisitor said.

The long night had clearly taken its toll on the Inquisitor who was now leaning back against the side of the small plaza clock tower. The victim's body had been removed from the scene, but blood still covered the ground around where it had laid. His spectacles were slightly crooked on his nose and he seemed like he was ready to fall asleep. And yet all the while, he did everything he could to hold onto his authoritative air.

Lightning explained to him everything that she had found out, most important of course being Holmes's testimony that it was in fact the Children of Etro who committed the crime. The Inquisitor had no doubts at all that this was the case, though he wondered what good that information did them. Lightning had a plan for this as well. She'd overheard a passerby mention that the heretic's usually gathered in the plaza around midnight and all moved in a pack, though to where nobody yet knew.

"The goddess's disciples are beginning to gather. If you lift the blockades around this area, there's a good chance they'll start to move out," Lightning explained.

"You're suggesting I let them go? Hm." The Inquisitor looked about the plaza and then back at the clock tower. It was nearly midnight now. Perhaps this plan might work. "It's not a bad idea. Yes, yes. I'll give the order, and we'll see where the heretics lead us."

The Inquisitor turned to his two guards and with a simple nod gave the order that was required. They in turn approached each guard at the gates on either side of the plaza and within moments they began to rise. Those guards who were not strictly sentries returned to their usual routines, all except the Inquisitor, his two bodyguards and Lightning, who now sat crouched in the small shadowy gap between the scaffolding and the station wall.

 _Now all they had to do was wait._

 _"_ In recent weeks, the heretics have become more visible on the streets of our holy city. The poor benighted fools don't believe in God's Salvation," The Inquisitor mused. "Clearly their despair has led them to carry out these wanton acts. If only they would open their eyes. Embrace God and they could bathe in the pure light of his almighty grace. Can't they see that their souls would be liberated in the new world?"

 _Maybe not_ , Lightning thought, remembering how strongly Snow had objected to the mere idea of Lightning trying to help him. Even amidst the confusion, she had not forgotten him. She wondered what Yusnaan would look like if she could see it right now?

"The irony of it all is that their fanatical rejection of the savior has only made my own faith that much stronger. Although perhaps that is the work of the savior herself," The Inquisitor continued.

No, the true irony was claiming to have been moved by the savior in a spiritual sense when in the real world the savior was guiding his hand far more directly. And he didn't even know it was her.

"If you think your faith will save you, then go ahead. Believe all you want," Lightning uttered, somewhat dismissively.

Perhaps his faith had saved him. She felt his heart lighten, and hers burn ever so softly.

Lighting looked at the Inquisitor and asked, "You mentioned earlier that there where another stream of murders."

The man nodded, "Yes. But these murders are not innocent victims. It seems a group of people are targeting those are threaten the citizens, they are a rise of murders for criminals and the like, and the Children of Etro are among those killed."

"So they're targeting only criminals." Lighting repeated.

"This group are well-trained, we're talking about a paramilitary type group. With the training, knowledge, and equipment to take out all of Nova Chrysalia."

Lighting just stood there in shock.

 _Paramilitary type?_ she thought.

* * *

Midnight came and several figures in white robes and hoods, each carrying strange ritualistic looking weapons began to move through the plaza. They walked right past Lightning and the Inquisitor, who were completely cloaked in darkness. The headed out the northern gate of the plaza and towards what lead to a small restaurant avenue.

"I'll follow them," Lightning said. "You stay here."

Lightning rushed through the plaza and around to the gate. She leaned back against the wall and peered through to the other side. The group had moved their way up a small set of stairs towards what seemed to be a far more deserted section of the street.

 _Take me to your leader_ _,_ Lightning thought coolly as she sidled around the gate to hide once more in a shadowy corner.

" 'The evil savior will die at the hands of the Shadow Hunter.' I sure don't like the sound of that," Hope chimed in. Lightning only now noticed that he had a tendency to state the obvious at the worst possible time. "When they say 'savior', do you think-"

"It's me alright. It has to be," Lightning replied quietly. "But who's the Shadow Hunter?"

"Better yet, who is this paramilitary group?" Hope asked.

it seems both Lighting and Hope wanted to know who is this group that are targeting only criminals.

"Don't know? But I suspect that they'll strike once these guys are alone."

She looked over to the stairwell. One of the heretics had waited behind, acting as a lookout for the rest of the group. He was looking right at where she was, but she was completely concealed by darkness, and behind a crate for good measure. There was no way he could have seen her.

But maybe he heard her?

"I don't know," Hope said. "Right now, no one else does either. The information is incomplete at best. But the Order thinks he could be the leader of the heretics."

The lookout moved on, and Lightning breathed a sigh of relief. She walked over to the stairwell, climbed over a nearby railing and crouched behind another crate. The street now turned into a partially constructed alleyway with no buildings or homes. Just walls and poorly rigged lighting. And the heretics were pushing their way deeper into it.

"So it's the Shadow Hunter who leads the cult? Does that mean he's also behind the murders?" Lightning asked.

The heretics moved again and Lightning stepped back out, but for a brief moment her timing was just a bit off. Her body was in view for just a moment as that damned lookout turned to watch their back. She saw him turning and was able to react in time to get behind another crate, but it was no good. The lookout had seen something.

He moved slowly towards the spot where Lightning was now hiding, his weapon raised. Lightning wasn't scared, exactly. She had nothing to fear from any of these people. But she may have just cost herself one of her best leads. Well, if worst came to worst she could probably beat the answers she needed out of them.

The Lookout put his hand on the opposite side of the crate. Lightning held her breath, and didn't dare to make any move that might reveal her position. She did place her hand on the hilt of her crimson sword though.

Suddenly at the end of the corridor a phone began to ring. The lookout turned back towards the others and one of the other heretics even whispered for him to hurry up. He gave one last look at the crate, then rushed over to the end of the row. Lightning turned to see that the alley opened up into a small clearing with a gate at the end. Grass and trees could be seen just beyond it. In the middle of this small clearing was a telephone booth, and one of the heretics had picked up the receiver.

"In the forest of darkness, Chaos holds sway. To the goddess of death, these numbers I say," the heretic spoke. And then in a softer tone which Lightning could not make out, he spoke a series of numbers.

The gate opened and the the heretics rushed through. Before Lightning could even think to try and follow them, the gate shut again, leaving her locked out. She casually approached the telephone booth.

"See that? I think I just found my invitation to the party."

"Yeah," Hope replied. " So when the phone rings, you have to give them a code. Simple- if you have the numbers."

"Right. Simple. So any bright ideas about how to do that? I mean, considering you're doling out advice?"

"Head back to town and see what you can uncover," Hope offered somewhat simply. Realizing that this was probably not enough to go on, Hope continued. "Look, let's just go over what we know. The heretical cult, the so-called 'Children of Etro' are behind the murders. They've become increasingly visible in the city. Judging by the tone of their 'message' they view the savior as their enemy. What I don't understand is why they would target you. You're here to save souls and guide them to a new world. Why wouldn't they want that?"

Lightning shrugged. "It's not that clear cut. To some God's Savior looks as much a murderer as these maniacs do. I'm not surprised they're afraid."

"Don't worry," Hope said. "Even if the world hates you, I'll always be by your side Light."

It was just as she was about to walk back to town that she heard the loud noises of automatic gunfire coming from the graveyard.

"Light, I'm picking heavy activities in the graveyard!" Hope told her.

Lightning quickly turned around and saw the gates slowly opening, and the same time the gun fire ceased.

"Hope, I'm going to investigate." she said as she ran her way to the graveyard.

"Be careful Light."

Lighting was running, looking for anything that can explain what just happen, that's when she the scene in front of her, not even far from the gate, she saw the bodies of the Etro fanatics, all of them with bullet holes covering their bodies, some with body parts blown away.

She then saw one of them moving, barely holding on to his life, coughing up blood.

Lightning walked towards the gravely injured man, "You don't have enough time to live, but you can help me by telling me who did this? Tell me who they are?"

The heretic gave out a weak laugh as he gurgle more blood, "No they...him. It's one man."

He then cough violently as he laid on ground, dying.

Lighting just stood there, shocked and confuse.

One man is responsible for those unknown murders, whoever he is, Lightning had feeling that this was the beginning.

* * *

 **AN: This was a long chapter. So this follows the LR story line but with my OC involve in this. I don't know what kind of firearms Final Fantasy XIII has, so I may use firearms from other games just to make ends meet. This fanfic will have a lot of The Punisher MAX elements, that explains why the M rating.**

 **Enjoy it and gave me an honest review.**


	2. They Call him

_**In Celebration of Marvel & Netfliex annocuning The Punisher Spin-Off Series.**_

* * *

 _Chapter 2: One-Man Firing Squad_

 _Absent gods and silent tyranny_  
 _We're going under hypnotised_  
 _By another puppeteer_  
 _And tell me why the men in cloaks_  
 _Always have to bring me down_  
 _Running from the ghosts and shadows_  
 _The world just disavows_

 _~Muse- Mercy~_

 **Earlier**

The gate opened and the the heretics rushed through. All of them wanted to get to their meeting in time, the group had a lot to talk about, mostly is about this man who's been targeting them recently, they lost 40 of their members to this man.

"Hurry, we cannot be late." said one of them

When they got near the grave stones, they notice something is wrong.

"I don't like this at all," the leader looked at his group who are quickly looking at their surroundings. "I think it's best if we-"

The group look in horror as their leader was mercilessly gun down.

Before any of them could react they were all greeted by a tall, muscular man dressed in black tactical military gear holding a big gun in his hands. What got the groups attention is that symbol smeared on his vest, a symbol of a skull, a symbol of death.

The heretics quickly tried to unsheathe their sickles but the man was faster.

"Bang." he said it with no emotion as he brought up his LMG and unloaded hell at the Etro's fanatics, gunning them down relentlessly and without any mercy.

The man saw as his bullets from his gun tore into the group, arms and legs being ripped away from their bodies, chests being shredded, even a few heads are blown away.

The man looked at the carnage he committed, he said nothing as he quickly left the graveyard and made his way to the Northern Nation, his work is far from done.

* * *

 **Day 1, 02:00**

Lightning sat down at the Restaurant District, the flickering light of the streetlamps illuminating a bowl of some fascinating stew. The owner claimed the ingredients had been imported directly from the Wildlands, but she somehow doubted that. You certainly wouldn't get such select ingredients in a stew that tasted this good for only 100 gil.

Lighting still couldn't get what the dying fanatic said, all of those unexplained murders of them and criminals were all caused by one man? She's not going to lie that this man did it quick and left without leaving a single trace.

"So, what do you want to do?" Hope asked as Lightning finished her meal. "You want to find that code, or you want to find that man who killed those fanatics?"

Lightning wiped her mouth with a napkin, returned her bowl to the owner and headed towards the Gate that lead back into the Plaza.

"The Children of Etro that were suppose to meet tonight are all dead, I'll have to wait until tomorrow, and this man will be out of my reach, Hope if you just saw what I saw, this man did it tactically, Like he knew where to hit and how to escape." she replied.

She turned to the direction of the graveyard to see guards from The Order clearing the bodies, people are gathering to see what happen. Lightning is pretty sure all of Luxerion heard the fireworks.

"Just where are we exactly going to put these heretics?" asked one of the guards

"I don't know, the morgue is completely full, this worst than what happen to that gang down in the Warrens last week." said the other guard

"It seems like a waste to just wait here until then. Why not explore the city for a while?" Hope suggested.

"I might as well. There's not much time left. I won't waste it."

"Yes, your time is the most precious thing you have now. How you use these few days may decide the very fate of the world."

 _I'm aware of that Hope,_ Lightning thought as she scanned the Plaza. To think that she'd been at this strange quest for only a mere twenty hours. Each moment of the first day went rushing through her head. Were it not for the fact that she'd spent five hundred years in crystal stasis, and truly knew what an eternity felt like, she might say that this day had seemed to last forever.

Lightning walked back into the train station and noticed a gate that had been previously shut was now open. It led out onto a dirt path and a narrow blockaded corridor. Lightning figured this was as good a place as any to start, when Holmes stopped her.

"Ma'am," he said kindly. "You... you do know that this leads to the Warrens, right? It's not exactly safe for visitors."

"What's with the gate?" Lightning asked.

"Well, the people in the Warrens tend to be an odd lot. They sleep during the day and only come out at night. For the safety of our citizens we bar passage to the Warrens except when they are up doing business at night time." Holmes explained.

"You mean The Order keeps them caged in here like animals?" Lightning asked.

"N-no nothing like that. But with the Chaos Infusions lately it's safer to keep parts of the city locked off. Besides, the people in the Warrens... they support those heretics," Holmes said.

"This gate's not going to lock behind me is it?" Lightning asked, ignoring Holmes' rationalizations.

"We lock them at 6 AM. Just be back before sunrise," Holmes explained. "Unless you want to spend tomorrow there too."

Lightning walked through the corridor, rubbing her head.

"Miss?" said Holmes

Lightning stop and looked at Holmes "Yes?"

Holmes gulped a bit, "Remember that guy I told you about over at the Restaurant District?"

Lightning nodded.

"Well I saw him entering the Warrens earlier, carrying a black duffle bag over his shoulders."

Lightning didn't say anything as she continue her way to The Warrens. she has to be careful, this man toke out those fanatics with military precision, so right now, she's dealing with a very highly trained killer.

"Hope?" she said.

"Yeah, I caught that," Hope said. "It's like I said, tensions are high and the people of the city are split between supporting the Order and supporting the Heretics. They segregate some of the 'less desirable' people into the Warrens."

"That kind of treatment can only go on for so long before somebody does something reckless."

"That's true. I suppose it's not hard to see why so many people think the Order is abusing their power."

Lightning rounded the corner of the corridor and fully took in the sight of the Warrens. The entire northern cluster of the city was a shanty town made up of half-constructed buildings, ruins, and even desolate shacks out of spare supplies. Large hovering robots patrolled around town. Perhaps the Order had argued that these were to protect the citizens, but Lightning knew crowd control when she saw it. The message was very clear: _Keep in line, or we'll keep you in line._

Lights shone around the Warrens, illuminating the entire area in a surreal and almost beautiful glow. The distant rumbling of the monorail over their heads was the only sound to rival the whirring of the mechanical sentries' engines. Any business conducted in the part of the city was clearly conducted in silence.

"Are you seeing this, Hope? It must be the heretic's sanctuary."

"Hopefully we'll be able to find out more about this mysterious Shadow Hunter and the man who killed those Etro Fanatics. I have a lot of questions I want to ask Them."

 _Me too,_ Lightning thought. The truth is that she's more interested in finding the mysterious vigilante rather than the Shadow Hunter. She knew that she has to be careful, if what the Inquisitor said earlier is true, than this man is most likely ex-military, Special Forces judging by his tactics, she may be the Savior but that doesn't mean she's can't die.

Lightning just hopes that when she finally meets this man that she isn't greeted with bullets.

She checked her watch. It was now 3 AM. Time was running out. She looked around the Warrens for any sign of the heretics, the man, or anybody who looked out of place. Then again, in a place like this, who could tell what "out of place" was?

She spent the next few hours going from building to building with very little result. The place was a shambled mess of a place and only a few of the residents were willing to talk with Lightning. The information she gathered was nothing she didn't already know.

Lightning had this strange feeling that somebody is watching her, but every time she looks around she found nothing out of the ordinary.

She checked her watch again. 5:45 AM. Any minute now Hope would be transporting her back to the Ark. As she rounded a corner she ran right into one of the robotic sentries.

"Halt, citizen. Present identification" the machine stated in a level, pre-recorded woman's voice similar to the one Lightning had heard at the train station.

"Sorry, just visiting," Lightning replied, turning towards a back alley.

"Halt, citizen. I am a Sentry. Classification: Gertrude. I have been entrusted with apprehending citizens under suspicion of illegal activities. Please present identification, or else remain where you are while awaiting an Inquisitor," The machine chimed on.

"Fine, I'll wait," Lightning said. "I hope he shows up within fifteen minutes or you'll be in for quite the show."

Understood. Contacting local authorities. Please place any weapons on the ground in front of you and take two paces back," The Gertrude chimed.

"Oh shut up you piece of junk!" Shouted a woman from the side of the street. "You stupid bastard!"

She threw a bottle at the machine which shattered against its metal frame.

"Citizen violence detected. First and final warning: surrender or I will use deadly force," the Gertrude sang in that same level voice.

"You already did! How many more of us are you gonna just slaughter like lambs!" The Woman shouted throwing a rock this time. It dented the hull of the Gertrude.

"Stop it!" Lightning ordered. "You're not going to win this fight."

"Citizen violence confirmed. Beginning outbreak protocol," The Gertrude's four arms lifted up and it rushed towards the woman.

The woman shielded her head with her hands, but Lightning got there first. Her sword cut through the Gertrude as though it were made of paper. The wreckage that was once the Gertrude landed at the woman's feet.

"What the hell is the matter with you. You could have gotten yourself killed!" Lightning shouted.

There it was again. She was not truly angry with the woman. Had her job not been to save souls, and by extension lives, she would have let her get crushed for her stupidity. But she knew that she would respond to this anger. She needed to hear her concern. All just a mental exercise.

"That machine. I don't know if it was that one of course, but... my son was killed by one of them, during a riot. He was only 7. He was just an innocent bystander. He didn't do anything to provoke it. But it... it killed him anyways," the young woman began to sob.

"Listen, I know it has to be hard. But getting yourself killed isn't going to solve anything," Lightning said. "Your son wouldn't want you to drink your life away and end up dying the same way he did, do you understand me. He would want you to live."

The lady looked up at the woman. She stopped sobbing as she noticed her hair. The faintest of smiles spread across her lips. "So it's true. The Savior has come at last."

A small beeping on her watch alerted Lightning to the time. 6 AM. The light of Hope's warp machine began to surround her. As the woman began to sob once more, she felt that same warm feeling on her chest. One last soul for the day, just in time.

And after all, her time was the most precious thing she had now.

The woman stood up and saw the savior vanish, she thought about what she said, as she was about to walk until she heard someone scream "Halt!"

She turned and saw 3 guards of The Order, she froze in fear as the guards lifted their weapons and pointed at her.

'This is it.' she thought as she closed her eyes, waiting for the bullets to tear her to shreds.

She then heard gunshot, follow by another gunshot, then another one, finally silence.

The woman touched her body only to realize she wasn't shot, she slowly open her eyes and saw all 3 guards dead on the floor. She then saw a man, in all black walking up to her.

She sigh in relief, almost everyone Nova Chrysalia, except The Order knew about him, to some he's an unspoken bogyman, but to some he keeps the darkness at bay.

The man stop and offered a hand to the young woman, "Are you hurt?"

The woman smiled and accepted his hand.

"Thank You."

* * *

 _The Ark_

"Welcome back Light," Hope said as Lightning stepped once again onto the marble platform that was the Ark.

 _One day, already gone. Only twelve remained._

"So why do I have to come back here each day?" Lightning asked. In answer to her question, the souls that she'd gathered within her body flew out of her chest and towards the tall tree Yggdrasil.

"Soul energy, Eradia, is what keeps the planet alive during this time. You must come back here every day at 6 AM to deliver the souls to Yggdrasil," Hope explained.

Hope clearly had news as he had that familiar earnest expression on his face. He had been looking for souls that Lightning needed to save, and the monitors showing all the various areas now had six large dots glowing brightly against the topographical backdrop.

"Got something for me?" She asked knowingly.

Hope nodded, turning back to his monitors. "There are certain areas within Nova Chrysalia that I want you to focus on. Five locations where I'm picking up anomalous Chaos readings."

Lightning folded her arms. "And I'm guessing one of those locations is right where Snow is."

"Yes, exactly," Hope said, zooming in on the map of Yusnaan. "The palace in the city of Yusnaan."

Hope moved about the map with each of his next words. "There is one, in the heart of Luxerion, the holy city. One more in the scorching sands of the Dead Dunes. And finally I've measured large Chaos fluctuations at two locations in the Wildlands."

"Four regions, Six locations," Lightning said.

 _And twelve days,_ she thought.

Hope turned back to Lightning. "To be more precise, the goals are people, not places. For example, the Chaos activity in and around Snow's palace is linked to him, and the darkness in his heart."

Lightning remembered all too well how Snow had been able to absorb Chaos into his body and even seemed to have a modicum of control over it.

"It's the same kind of Chaos that I'm picking up in the other four locations."

Lightning nodded. "And you want me to find these five people."

"They're your priority, yes. Those people have massive burdens on them. The fate of many rest on their shoulders. And that makes your task all the harder."

 _Of course. That means if I can save them, I will save all those who depend on them._

Lightning had a brief vision of being able to save thousands of souls all at once by helping these five persons, when Hope brought her back to reality.

"Helping them will not be easy – even for God's handpicked Savior. But I can help you."

Hope returned to his monitors and began pulling up the records of all the people in each area. The numbers were not that big as and yet not nearly as large as Lightning would have hope. The entire world's population only numbered in the thousands at present. There was a separate list set at the side, by the looks of it it had barely 80 people. These were the souls in peril. Yet she was expecting more souls, but the list was so short.

"Why is the list short, so few people want to be saved?" Lighting asked confuse on having such a short list of people needing to be saved.

"Light, I wanted to get to that see, that man who killed those Etro members, he's been helping people in need as well."

Lightning was taken aback by this, the man that killed those heretics, he has been helping people during the time she was in crystal?

Hope showed her a video on the monitor, it was the woman she saved before, she was surrounded by Three guards from The Order, they all look like they we're going to gun her down like a dog. That's when she saw all 3 of the guards drop dead to the floor, and saw a man, in black tactical military gear walking up to the women.

 _'All of this happen right after I vanished?'_

"Light, this is a problem. He's doing your job, and that means you have less souls to save, which mean less Eradia for the tree." Hope explain.

"So? My goal is those 5 people.' Lighting replied, her arms crossed to her chest, still watching the video of the man.

Hope sighed, "Light, this man is a problem, you as the savior have a choice, convince him to stop helping."

Lighting just looked back to the screen, she saw how he left those Children of Etro, she knows that this man will not go down easily, she may be the savior, but this man is highly trained.

 _A one man firing squad._

"The only problem is that this man doesn't stay in one place for to long, he'll travel from place to place, making him hard to track down, he could be in Yusnaan or The Dead Dunes as we speak."

Lightning rubbed her forehead in frustration, "I've only got a handful of days, there just isn't enough time for me to track those five people that need my help, and deal with this a man who's making my job as the savior hard, and what you've said is true, then I'll waste more time looking for him."

Hope bit his lip for a moment before speaking. " Lightning, This will sound... extreme. But you'll probably have to kill him."

"You're saying I shouldn't waste time on convincing him and just kill him? I don't think he'll go down easily, especially if he's ex-military," Lightning replied.

"Of course it would be best if you could convince him to stop helping people. But somehow I don't think he'll listen. Right now it's a coin toss, Light."

 _'That's just great, I have 12 days, a dwindling number of people that need saving, a man who not only kills criminals but who is probably helping more people , and 5 people that are my top priority'_

Lighting could only groan in annoyance.

"I'm going to let Snow cool his jets," Lightning said. "Take me back to Luxerion. I want to make sure that the Children of Etro don't kill another innocent girl, and who knows, the man could still be in Luxerion."

Hope nodded and once Lightning was safely on board the Warp Machine, she was pushed through time and space once more.

And then there was a delay.

Lightning had stopped warping, but she didn't seem to have left the Ark. When she looked around she saw the same platform, only now the sky was pitch black and the heavy cloak of Chaos seemed to sweep over everything.

 _Where am I? What is this?_

She turned around to see the enormous crystalline throne of Etro – that titanic stone that had once been her prison – sitting exactly where Yggdrasil would stand in the real Ark. And sitting in the chair was Lumina.

"Hey, Savior. What's going on?" Lumina called in a singsong voice.

"You again," Lightning said, gripping her sword.

The radio in Lightning's ear crackled with the heavy distortion of Hope's voice. "Light, can you hear me? Are you all right? Where are you?"

What's the problem? Equipment trouble?" She asked.

"I don't know," Hope replied. "I'm getting crazy readings- the coordinates make no sense. I can't pinpoint your position."

Suddenly the line went dead.

"Hope? Are you there?" Lightning called.

Lumina kicked her feet merrily off the side of the crystal throne. She put on a pout and huffed teasingly. "No, no, no. Hope can't hear you or see you. You're invisible. Do you know why? Because we're inside you. Spooky, huh?"

Lightning looked around the surroundings. The void filled with Chaos, with only fragments of her past sliding in and out, such as the Throne of Etro. This was more than a mere academic discussion on metaphysics, and Lumina did not seem the type to spin yarn in metaphors.

"You mean inside my mind?" Lightning asked, choosing a literal translation.

"Yeah," Lumina replied. Her teasing expression seemed to soften. In an odd way she seemed somewhat more authentic now, her similar appearance to her sister notwithstanding. "It's a safe place that God can't see." At the drop of a pin her tricky demeanor was back. "You could almost say it's like, oh, I don't know- an unseen realm."

Lightning shook her head. "All right, if you say so. But that begs the question- what the hell are you doing in here?"

"I have a name. It's Lumina. And I know a lot about you." She disappeared for a fraction of a second before reappearing just in front of Lightning. "You need my advice. And in here, we can talk about anything we want, safe from prying eyes."

"Prying eyes?" Lightning asked, putting her hand on her radio. "You mean Hope?"

"Yep. He might not realize it, but everything he learns gets passed straight on to God."

"What of it? I don't have any secrets to hide."

Lightning could almost remember what the emotion annoyance felt like. The prattling of this girl was certainly stimulating her desire not to waste time.

"I have no reason to betray him," she answered stiffly.

"Right, right. That's very convincing," Lumina nodded as she slowly circled Lightning. "Keep those feelings hidden and play the loyal little servant. You want to be as cold as the steel in your sword. You do that, and then no one can guess what's inside. It's true God can't see into human hearts."

Lumina stopped circling, facing Lightning again. There was something of a warning in her next words.

"But he can read your face and tone just like anyone else, and make his own guesses."

"Like I said, I don't have anything to hide. He's promised to bring Serah back. I'm not gonna do anything that might cause him to change his mind. Why should I?"

Lumina cocked her head to the side and continued her circling. "Are you still in there, Lightning? Why are you afraid?"

 _Afraid?_

She didn't feel anything right now, but Lightning had to admit, this odd choice of words caught her attention.

"Come on, think about it. We're inside your mind. Don't you get it? If you can't be true to yourself here, where can you?"

Lumina disappeared once more and then reappeared sitting on the throne once again.

"I know you haven't changed- 'cause you can't."

Lightning put her hand on her hip and sighed out of exasperation. "What the hell are you?"

Lumina's figure seemed to split into two, as though she were made of white light crashing into a prism. The second reflection of herself bore the appearance of Serah even more clearly than the similarities within Lumina.

"We're just particles of dust, brushed from the palm of a god. That's all we ever were. Right, sis?"

Lumina began to fade away into the light. No. Serah was right there, feet from her. Lightning would not lose her. She rushed towards the throne.

"No, wait!" She shouted.

But it was too late. Lumina was gone, leaving Lightning alone within her own mind.

* * *

 ** _Luxerion, Day 2_**

Darkness surrounded Lightning and after a few moments she was back where she'd begun, drifting through time and space towards the city of Luxerion, and the beginning of her second day.

"Finally!" Hope exclaimed. "I've got a connection again. Light, what just happened?"

If Lightning could properly move during the travel through space-time she would be shaking her head. She didn't really know. How was she able to teleport into her own mind? How was she having a conversation with that girl? Well, she may as well start there.

I was talking to Lumina," Lightning answered.

"Lumina? That girl? What did she want? And where is she now?"

"You didn't hear any of that?"

"No, my sensors didn't pick up a thing. Are you sure she was there? Maybe it was just a dream."

"A dream?" Lightning asked. "Maybe that's what it was."

 _No it wasn't_ _,_ Lightning protested internally. But she didn't exactly have a better explanation for what had just happened to her. Lightning landed on the north station platform in Luxerion. Speculation about what had just happened would have to wait until later. She was on the clock again.

"Er, right," Hope replied. "Light, I wanted to tell you I got more info on the man, what the inquisitor said earlier is right, he's indeed ex-military but he wasn't in either PSICOM, The Guardian Corp, or even The Academy. But all I know that He's tracking gangs, criminals, and the like to their home turf and taking them out with military precision."

Lighting got the info and froze in place. ' _Ex-military but not from Cocoon?'_

"Light, I don't know have any more on his name, but the people of Nova Chrysalia have given him a nickname."

"Like what," Lighting replied "Gun Nut? Killing Machine?"

She could hear Hope gulp a bit and said, "Not quite. They're calling him...'The Punisher.'"

Lightning, although she couldn't feel any emotion, she could feel her skin grow cold at what Hope just said.

 _'The Punisher?'_

* * *

 **AN: Yeah I threw a bit of lines from Daredevil, also since my OC is The Punisher, he is heavily based on the Earth-200111 - Punisher Max, Meaning that the later chapters will be Dark, Gritty, Violent, and so on. Lightning may be OOC a bit, but hey I want her to at least have a bit a fear in facing him, anyways This isn't as long as the first chapter, but I'll try to make my chapters long for you guys. Anyways gotta go and play some LR.**


End file.
